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2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ln/vanto@ Schuyler iles l f Oct 18 927 s. NxLEs GOLD SEPARATOR Filed July 2, 1925 Oct. 18 1927.

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. GOLD SEPARATOR 2- sheets-sheet 2 Filed July' 2, 1925 y SchuylerNiles.

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Patented Oct. 18, 1927.

- UNITED :STATES SCHUYLER Nrrins, or wrisHoUGrAr'.,v WASIKINGTON.

, GoLDsErARAToB. N

iippiicatin med ,my `2, `11925. ,serial ivo. 421,189.

My said. invention relates to a gold separator and .it is an object of the same to provide a device by means of which free gold,`even if very fine as so-called flake7 gold or flour gold, may be separated from the sand, earth or other material with which it is associated. It is an object of my invention to produce practically complete separation lof the gold from the 'foreign ma- 10 terial in which it is found by simple means which shall' be Ainexpensive both in original cost and in operation. l

Referring to the accompanying drawings whichk are made a part hereof and on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts,

Figure 1 is a side elevation ofa preferred embodiment of my invention,

Figure `2, a Vertical section of the initial amalgamating unit,

Figure 3, a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2, Figure 4, a vertical section of the second amalgamating unit,

Figure 5, a plan view of mechanism illustrated in Fig. 4, and

Figure 6, a view of the stirrer shown in Fig. 4, said View being taken at right angles to Fig. 4. Y'

ln the drawings reference character 10 1ndicates the frame of the machine on which is mounted a sluicev box' 11.k A tank V12 is secured in anysuitable manner to the bottom of the sluice box and a cone hopper ,15 is arranged concentrically 'of the 'tank 1 2, this cone. hopper being suspended from a box. A'second yoke 17 is attached tothe vfirst yoke in any convenient manner vby means of bolts '18, and a shaft 20 is jourbers of said yokes. At its lower end said shaft bearsa screw coiifveyoi'21 which works in the cone hopper and 'is provided at its lower end with a. pair of .spreader blades 22 (Fig. 3) which extend nearly to the periph.- ery ofthe tank 12. A pair of apertures 23 permit the material in the hopper to escape as fast as it is fed downward by the conveyor 21, the arrangement of the spreader blades and the lower end of the hopper being such, because of the close prokimity of thelower edge of the hopper extension to the upper surface of said blades, thatno material can escape above the blades but whatto the bottom ofthe tank 12 which is filled naled in bearings on the horizontal mein-V ever is fed out passes underneath the bladesl to'some distance above the'top o f the "blades withfquicksilver. L Abovethe horizontal part ofthe yoke 16 the shaft 2O isiprovided with a beveledl pin'- ion 24 meshing with a beveled pinionk 2 5 on ashaft 26 provided with a. pair of `pul-V leys 27 and 28. A `collar 29` on the shaft 20 bears against the lower side of yoke 17 to hold the shaft down; anda collar 30 on the shaft 26 bears against one side of the yoke 17, said collar cosoperati'n'g vwith the beveled gear 25'to hold the shaft in' plac'e, thegear `25 'being provided with a flan-ge bearing against a brace 31'liXed` to the yokes 16 and 17. 'A belt 32 passes over the pulley 28 and is driven from any suitable source of power to drive the shafts 26` and 20 and the parts connected thereto.' i i A pair of braces 33 extend diagonally from the upper end of the yoke to the floor of the sluice boX 11, which as may be seen in Fig. 2, has a relatively narrow outlet at its lower end leading to a tank 35 in a vsluice box 36.

A yoke 37 is secured to the bottom of the sluice box 36 and said yoke' provides bearings for` ashaft 38 having a collarV 39 resting on Athe horizontal portion of the yoke whereby they proper elevation of the shaft. is maintained. f The yoke is braced byY anob? lique b`ar"40 secured at'l one end toa shoulder on the yoke and at the other end'to .t'lie`bot- Vtom-of the sluice-box 36. A'Ilheshaft '38`is provided at its lupper endkwith` a pulley 41 connected by a to the' pulley' 27 on the shaft 26.l f yoke'16 secured to the bottom of the shi-iceA 'At the lowei`1vrv endl of the/shaft 38 a crossbar 43 `issecured thereto-and this cross-bar is provid'edwith' a pair V'of-plates 44 secured to' opposite ends' of the crossebaiat opposite 'sides thereofv by meansV of jloolts4 orin any other convenient manner. Preferably,- butl not necessarily, these platesfare made of cop` v per orare plated with copper and they lare perforated asindicated at 45 to render their rotation easier and to mix up thoroughly the material kin the tailings tank. The tailings tank is lined with copper plates 46 secured thereto in any convenient manner to permit ready removal yas by means of wedges 47 held in place by bolts 48. v

Apipe 49 leads intothe tank 12 and terminates in acoil 50 above the level of the quicksilver in the tank. series of perforations extending horizontally inward therefrom as indicated at 51,suc`h arrangement causing the flow of water to This coil'hasv a help to lift thesand or pulp and assist it in escapingV over the top of the tank. e

In the operation of my device the gold-` bearing sand, earth or pulp` is fed into the cone hopper in any convenient manner either mechanically or by hand, and is moveddown through the hopper bythe screw conveyor,

it being edby the screw, as above explained,`

in y suoli a manner. as to pass underneath the elongated blades 22 to the bottoniV of the hopper and necessarily below the upper level of the quicksilver. yThe blades spread it over the bottom and the gold is amalgama-ted by the quicksilver while the foreign matter `is forced outward and upward by the containedby the Quicksilver inthe manner well understood by those skilled in the ,art of mining. n,

y The water and the material carried thereby flow over the top of the sand or pulp tank into the sluice box 11 the bottom of which is inclined so that the material flows Vdownward and out through the narrow open .ing oftheboxinto the amalgamating tank 35. In. the amalgamating tank it is stirred up by the rotation of the blades 44 in a manner to cause the material to be well washed and to `permit any gold or mercury contained therein to tall to the bottoni of the tank or adhere to the sides thereof. The

liner plates 46, as-above stated, are made of copper which isplated with mercury and Vif the blades 44 are made of copper they may also be plated with mercury. In the process of stirring the refuse from the pulp or stand tank, `the small residue otgold is brought into contact either `witlrthe mercury coated plates 46 Vor `blades 44 and is amalgamated thereby., The accumulated mate- 1`rial on the amalgamating tank flows over thejedgeot it and out by way of the sluice box` 36, whence the tailingsmay be removed by means of a conveyor or shovel, or in any othereonvenent manner. The stirring is suthciently vigorous to prevent the sand,etc. from packing in the amalgamating or tailings tank.

It will be, obvious to those skilled in they art that my device may be modilied in Vvarious ways without departing from the spirit of the invention and thereforeV Ido not limit myself to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specilieat-ion but only as indicated in the appended claims.

Having thus fully described my said invention7 what Ielaim` new and desireto secure by LettersPatent is: n y

l. The combinationotl a tank, a hopper above said tank having its lower end forming a casing terminating closely adjacent the bottom of the tank, :a spiral conveyor extending through said hopper and casing and having spreader blades at its lower end extending outwardly between the end of the casing and the bottom of the tank, said spreader blades titting snugly against the lower end of the casing and the bottomwot `the tank but having smalljopeningsbetween the blades permitting a small amount of material to be ted from the lower end ofthe casing to a point beneath the spreader blades, substantially as set forth. l l

2; The combination: of aV tank, a `hopper above the tank, a spiral conveyor extending through said hopper and having spreader` bladesat` its end, said hopper forming a` casing for the conveyor and .terminating against the spreader blades, said spreader blades being rotatable upon the bottom of thetank in direct Contact therewithand having an aperture between the same permitting material to be separated to be fed there-V through to a position beneath the spreader "blades where it may `be worked outwardly n in a thin layer, substantially as set` iorth.

In witness whereof, l have hereunto set my hand at Vancouver, Vashington this` 26th Vday ot .lune7 A.,D.gnineteen hundred and twent-ydive.

- `scHUYLnnv Niniisf. 

